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Robert didn’t quite have my date of birth correct, but close enough. For my 7th birthday in 1966, he sent me a money order for $20. That was a very generous gift – various online calculators give the value today as somewhere between $160 and $820 if adjusted for inflation. I’m sure my mother put it in a bank account for me. She taught me that it was important to save money because you never knew when you might need it – a lesson she learned early in life and never deviated from. In terms of things that had value to me in 1966, candy bars were a nickel and most board games cost less than $5.
The letter below to Helene was sent together with the letter to Eva that we saw yesterday. In it, Robert refers to a newspaper article from April of 1965, so it has probably been at least a year since the last time he wrote. We will see the article in a few weeks.
One of the upsides for me when my mother was ill was that my grandmother babysat me a lot that year. I have vague but fond memories of spending many hours in her apartment.
We learn from this letter that by 1966, Robert has retired and that he and his wife have gotten a divorce. I am so sorry that life never got easier for him.
22.3.1966
My dear Helen,
to-day it is Helen Rose’s day, but I wish to take this occasion to send you my warmest greetings and good wishes. —It might be a strain to you to write and it is for this reason that I address Eva in the first place. I only hope she is in a better state of health than when she wrote me last. I feel terribly sorry for her what she had to go through — I hope it is a matter of the past and that she is again fit enough to take care of her home and also to take up her work without overtaxing her strength. —How fortunate that you were able to look after Helen Rose while Eva was in hospital. At the same time a welcome proof of your fitness. All this is months back and I am anxious to learn what has happened in the mean time...
You might be pleased to know that I am quite well again. It took me some time to get over the disappointment with Anne but time heals everything and I got adjusted to live by myself. It is also fortunate that Farbenfabriken Bayer granted me a pension which enables me to live modestly but without having to cut down on essentials.
Eva sent me the paper cutting with your picture and the report of your winning the top prize in the Social Security Game. I do not know what pleased me more, the beautiful picture or the good luck which happened to you. Eva is rightly proud of her mother and I share her joy and sentiments.
It was a bad year for her and also for me. As I mentioned before, I am recovered from the nervous breakdown which prevented me from writing for so long a time. This is the first effort to break the unhappy spell and I only pray and hope that the news from you and Eva will be reassuring.
My dear Helen, I am with you in my thoughts and I wish you good fortune and a good health.
With my love,
Robert